“Aunt Ro, leave him alone,” Cass grumbled. “We have work to do.”
He gestured Kushiel over to the couch, and after Kushiel sat, Cass sat next to him. Their legs were almost touching, and Kushiel tried very hard not to be distracted by that fact.
“Hmm, perhaps the other meanings for dahlias are appropriate after all,” she murmured, and Kushiel felt a bit like an unsuspecting worm who was about to be snatched by a bird. She was smiling at him, and it was… disconcerting. He had dealt with demons who were less frightening than her.
“Keep your machinations to yourself, Aunt,” Cass scolded her. “Be useful and go get the other ghost.”
Aunt Ro huffed at Cass, but she flounced off into the other room. Kushiel still felt clueless and confused, because he had no idea what plans Aunt Ro might have for him. He was distractedfrom asking when Cass cleared his throat and laid a hand on Kushiel’s knee.
Kushiel needed to get himself under control. His reaction to Cass was not appropriate. The man was kind and sweet and treated everyone with respect, and Kushiel would not sully that with his baser… desires.
He was not worthy of someone such as Cass. He only needed to remember that to quell the fluttering inside him. He would protect Cass and find the lost souls; that was his job.
“You alright, K?” Cass asked, looking at Kushiel closely.
Luckily, Kushiel was saved from answering, because Aunt Ro came back in at that moment, although the pesky flutterings returned at Cass’s use of the nickname. Kushiel had never had a nickname before. He was distracted quickly enough when he saw what Aunt Ro returned with, though.
It was… Well, Kushiel couldn’t rightly say what it was. It was a shadow, like a figure seen in a totally dark room. It was low to the ground, like it was crawling. He could vaguely make out four limbs, a body, and a face, but any distinct features were completely missing.
The ghost came straight to him and crawled up next to him, and when it was resting against his side, he felt the lost soul that he knew.
Outrage flowed through Kushiel again. Someone had done this to all the souls on Erebus. This shadow had once been a complete soul; they had been able to speak and they had features, even though most souls in Erebus weren’t clearly one gender and didn’t have distinctive features. They retained a general human form, their ability to communicate, and essential facets of their personalities, but much else from their earthly forms was lost.
The souls didn’t have names anymore on Erebus, but Kushiel often thought of them by nicknames. He had nicknamed thisone Professor, because this soul had been one who had talked often and extensively with him, and they had struggled with the nature of good and evil. They had reveled in conversation and philosophizing, and Kushiel had felt they were close to being ready for reincarnation; their light had been growing brighter and brighter in recent months.
Now they were a hollowed out shell of what they had once been. Kushiel pushed his love and forgiveness into the ghost, and he felt a stab of pain inside himself at the action, but it didn’t matter. He couldn’tnothelp, and he continued to pour himself into the ghost despite the agony it caused.
Through the haze of pain, he heard Cass gasp and felt his hand grip Kushiel’s leg even more tightly. Kushiel held onto that feeling, letting the peace that was Cass’s soul ease his pain.
“Heavens,” Aunt Ro gasped.
“You see it too?” Cass asked, but the voices sounded far away.
He felt hands pulling him away from the ghost, and though his vision was slightly dim, he thought Aunt Ro was taking the hand of the lost soul in her own and leading it away.
Then somehow Kushiel’s head was laying in Cass’s lap, because Kushiel was looking up into his face, which looked almost… loving.
And that was the last thought Kushiel had before darkness claimed him.
Chapter 15
Cassius
Cassius gently smoothed Kushiel’s dark hair away from his face.
“Will he be alright?” Aunt Ro asked, wringing her hands.
“I think so,” Cassius whispered. “He seems brighter again, doesn't he?”
Aunt Ro hummed in agreement, and Cass continued to gently pet Kushiel’s head. His hair was soft and silky, and Kushiel’s head was a comforting weight in his lap. He smoothed his other hand down Kushiel’s chest, where his light was strongest when Cassius looked for it. He focused in, sharpening his vision, and he watched as one of those tiny gold threads reached up and touched his wrist. He breathed in sharply, and Aunt Ro, who had been pacing, stopped and ran over.
“What is it? Is he alright?” she demanded.
Cass didn’t answer; he just watched in awe as the tiny gold thread twined around his wrist. He felt himself tearing up a bit. So his hopes hadn’t been unfounded. Kushiel was his mate. That was all this could mean, wasn’t it?
Yes, there was only one thread, and Cass knew as soon as he let his focus slip he wouldn’t be able to see it anymore, but surelyit wouldn’t have connected to him if they weren’t mates. It was thin and weak, and he worried that any wrong action could snap it, but it was a beginning. It was hope.
He had known how much he felt for Kushiel, and this only made him realize how much he wanted the angel to be his. He could admit now that he loved all that Kushiel was, and maybe he had from that first sight of the angel’s blindingly bright soul. The selflessness, the humility, the caring, even the slightly formal awkwardness—Kushiel was perfect. Yes, he was shy and unsure of himself, but Cass would only be too happy to build him up.
